Description:
The National Green Infrastructure Certification Program (NGICP) provides the base-level skill set needed for entry-level workers to properly construct, inspect and maintain green stormwater infrastructure (GI). Designed to meet international best practice standards, NGICP is a tool that can be used to meet a wide range of needs, including professional development for existing GI professionals and as part of a larger workforce development to provide candidates with the technical skills necessary to enter the green workforce and earn a livable wage.
NGICP’s primary objectives are to:
- Provide a pool of skilled workers to construct, inspect, and maintain GI to support the long-term performance of these systems
- Support efforts to catalyze sustainable employment within local communities
- Create career opportunities with livable wages through GI investments
The NGICP covers the following GI types:
- Bioretention (includes rain gardens, curb cuts/curb extension, stormwater planters/tree boxes, tree trenches, and bioswales/vegetated swales)
- Permeable pavements (porous asphalt, pervious concrete, pervious pavers)
- Rainwater harvesting (rain barrels and cisterns)
- Rooftop detention practices (green roofs and blue roofs)
- Dry wells
- Stormwater wetlands
What is NGICP?
The National Green Infrastructure Certification Program (NGICP) is a certification program that offers a credential for GI installation, inspection, and maintenance workers that verifies that they have the required knowledge to build, inspect, and maintain sustainable GI systems. It is meant to be an entry-level certification that focuses on knowledge that is important for all three of these groups of workers to possess to carry out their job tasks properly.
What is green infrastructure?
Stormwater management practices that protect, restore, or mimic the natural water cycle are referred to as green infrastructure (GI). Some of these practices use trees and vegetation (i.e. rain gardens and green roofs) while others do not (i.e. rain barrels and permeable pavement). However, all green infrastructure does work to capture and store precipitation near where it falls so it can be managed in a way to deliver environmental, social, and economic benefits.
Why was NGICP created?
The NGICP was created to promote skilled individuals who will install, inspect, and maintain green infrastructure (GI) systems and also support community-based job creation, and establish national standards for individuals seeking to work on GI projects. The driver for this joint effort was DC Water’s amended federal consent decree (2005 consent decree, amended in 2016) to construct large-scale GI to manage combined sewer overflows (CSOs) in the District of Columbia, and the Green Jobs Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between DC Water and the District of Columbia. The consent decree is a legal agreement between DC Water, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Justice.
What does it mean if a person is NGICP certified?
The NGICP certification exam is designed to validate whether or not a person has the foundational knowledge needed to properly perform tasks in constructing, inspecting, and maintaining GI. A certified person has an understanding of the objectives of green infrastructure, the way that different GI practices should function, and the critical tasks involved in constructing, inspecting, and maintaining these practices.
What is the certification process?
The certification process involves the following steps:
- Meeting the eligibility criteria
- Attending a GI training course
- Submitting a certification application form
- Submitting proof of education
- Taking the exam and receiving a passing grade